


The Black Out Whisperer

by spattergroit



Category: Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Bonding, Drinking Games, Drunken Flirting, F/M, Making Out
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-31
Updated: 2017-12-31
Packaged: 2019-02-24 11:20:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,101
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13212675
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spattergroit/pseuds/spattergroit
Summary: During a blackout, Brienne and Tormund play a game ofNever Have I Ever.





	1. Part One

**Author's Note:**

> I don't own these characters. I have these ideas for one-shots and I suppose it could be a little series where these two end up in comical yet romantic situations. This is the first installment???? In advance, thank you guys for reviewing, kudos, and just loving this ship!

Brienne pulled a curtain back to look out of the window and clenched her jaw. There he was, Tormund Giantsbane, holding a brown box that contained all of her sports trophies from elementary school all the way through university. He strolled toward the entrance of her townhomes with casual confidence and she could see his fingers tapping the sides of the box and his lips pushed forward as if he were whistling. 

She had been trying to get this box of nostalgia for three weeks and during those three weeks, she and Sansa missed each other’s calls like two passing trains. Jon, who had become the messenger between the two, and former roommate in their now altered trio, made the promise to get Brienne her items.

Except, in typical Jon fashion he waited until the last minute to deliver them. Right at this moment, Jon was on a plane to Switzerland, where he would be photographing a film set and its accompanying actors in the weeks to come. So of course that put him out of commission for delivery and because he was just as worse at communication as Sansa, he sent her a text letting her know that Tormund would be delivering the items exactly a minute before the man's truck pulled up in the parking lot of her townhomes.

She was telling Jon she need him to do that but Tormund was already here. In record time.

Two things struck her as she pulled away from the window:

  * There was a massive possibility he went through that box (she would have)
  * There was an even greater possibility that he was going to comment about it.



And then there was the third thing:

  * She didn't want to engage in that.



It wasn’t that she didn’t like Tormund, it was far from it. His personality was just so enormous to a degree that unsettled her. It was something that took a lot of getting used to and Brienne had only known him for a few months. He was Jon’s old friend from college and newly appointed roommate. They hadn’t met on the best of terms either and she just needed time… to get used to him.

But with everyone off doing important things like getting married or working with well known actors, Tormund coming by her place to drop off boxes was going to be the most eventful thing that would happen for her all week.

He knocked on the door and with a sigh, Brienne walked over and pulled it open.

“Hey, Brienne!”

Why was he always so happy?

“Hi, Tormund. I’ll take those.”

She held her arm out for the box and he stood there looking at her hands.

“No way. I’ll sit them down. Wouldn’t be a gentleman if I didn’t.”

Brienne opened her mouth to protest but she was stepping aside to let him inside anyway. The quicker she let him sit the box down, the faster she could get him out of her place.

“So, you played sports in school?”

Ah, there it was. Didn’t take him very long, did it?

“Yes, I played a few sports here and there.”

“Here and there..” he nodded his head and then continued, “so what were your favorite sports to play in school?”

He was doing that thing where he struck up a conversation with her again because Tormund was a professional breaker of ice in any cordial setting. Brienne on the other hand, was a bit... different. And besides, she remembered those lascivious looks he tossed her way when he thought she wasn’t looking, she couldn’t be bothered with that right now. Instead of entertaining his camaraderie tonight she decided to keep it short and sweet.

“Listen, I’ve got some cleaning and unpacking to do so… what on earth?”

In the middle of her sentence, everything in the house went black. She paused with her hands in mid-air, panic settling in alarmingly fast. Every light in the house, the television, all her large kitchen appliances… the power left them like a dying light in someone's eyes.

“Uh ohhh,” Tormund’s sing-song voice made her roll her eyes in the darkness.

“The power’s gone out!” Brienne stated it like he wasn't standing right next to her.

She blindly reached around in the darkness and stopped the moment her hands collided with something large and hard. Oh. That was his arm. Absently, her fingertips trailed over it and she was surprised at how soft the hair on his skin was. 

Her hands quickly went down to her sides and she stood there trying to figure out how to quickly recover from her own awkwardness. Tormund wasn’t helping, standing there and staying quiet. With his stupid, big arms.

“It should be back on soon.”

Blackouts happened all the time. There was nothing strange about this one.

“What should we do?”

His voice sounded calm despite being stuck in someone’s apartment in the dark. Brienne absently looked around, as if she could actually see in this. Upon realizing what she was doing, she scoffed loudly and tried to be as patient as her already thinly veiled patience would allow.

“Stand here and wait.” She didn’t mean to sound so condescending when she said it but it was done now.

After they stood in silence (though she could hear Tormund shuffling around) for what felt like ages, a flash of blinding white light filled a small space in Brienne’s dining room and it illuminated underneath his face and beard heavily. 

She could see how green his eyes were and how bright the redness in his beard was, the natural blond highlight in his hair only making his hair seem even more beautiful. She noticed, as the light showcased the best of his features, including a million and one freckles, that he had very pretty teeth. It was an odd thing to notice, she realized, but with him grinning like an idiot, she couldn’t help  _ but  _ see them. Not even she, in all her stubbornness could deny how handsome he was.

“I don’t want to be Captain Obvious here but…”

Brienne wanted to give him a  _ Then, don’t! _ retort but she remained quiet, glaring at him from where she stood.

“I don’t think these lights are coming back on any time soon,” he finished. 

Brienne sighed and stood there in silence with the faintest bit of hope that his statement was wrong. She’d experienced blackouts of all types, was even present that time in NYC during the blackout of 2003 while on vacation. Then there was the blackout in London she’d spent with her father… and how could she forget that blackout in Texas when she was on a work trip? 

It was almost as if blackouts followed her. She would call herself The Blackout Whisperer if she knew how to prevent herself from being stuck in them.

Tormund stayed quiet, seemingly waiting for her to make the first move. The thought frustrated her for a second then she realized that oh, it was her apartment, and he was trying to be respectful.

“Hopefully, it doesn’t last too long. Do you have a flashlight on your phone?”

“Of course, I do! Everyone does.”

“Okay, great,” she replied in a dry tone. “Well, do me a favor and turn that flashlight on. I’m going to get my phone and call Sansa to see if she’s experiencing the same thing. I’ll guide you.”

And so she did, stepping carefully around (him) until she reached the coffee table in her living room and picked up her cell phone. Tormund was an excellent cell phone flashlight guide. She would thank him for that later. But first, she needed to call Sansa. To the surprise of no one, the phone went straight to voicemail.

“I’ll call Jon,” Tormund said and then the flashlight disappeared and the light from his screen made another appearance.

“He’s not here, remember? He’s gone to Switzerland. He’ll be no help.”

“You’re right,” he nodded his head.

“Maybe I can go check on my neighbors and see if they’re okay?” 

Then she remembered that Jeff and his spouse Tiger were visiting Tiger’s parents in New Zealand. And since those were the only neighbors she had any inkling of a friendship with, she wasn’t going to bother with anyone else. 

“Actually, nevermind.”

She could hear some people just outside her own balcony and apartment door asking if everyone’s lights were out. She absolutely hated when people asked stupid questions like that. It was a wonder they even know it was blackout.

When fifteen more minutes of pained silence passed, Brienne huffed and turned on the flashlight of her own cell phone. 

“Do you have a light?”

“Didn’t peg you for a smoker,” Tormund replied.

“No, I don’t smoke.” She paused and narrowed her eyes, “You do?”

He hesitated for a moment then chuckled, she could hear the tension in his laugh, “Yeah, actually I do.”

“You can’t smoke in the apartment but I don’t mind if you want to go on the balcony and do it.”

“Oh nah, it’s not like I have an addiction or anything.”

He smiled at her and she realized he was making a joke, breaking more ice. She returned his smile with a small one of her own. Brienne wasn’t a fan of smoking herself but the idea of seeing Tormund puff on a cigarette, lips around the filtered area, dragging it back and blowing smoke… She liked what she saw and she couldn’t believe she was thinking it either.

“Okay, sure. And I have the lighter.” He pulled it from his pocket, she could hear the crinkle of his pack of cigarettes, and shook it in the air for her to see. Even in the dark she could see it was one of those silver Zippo lighters and it had “RB” engraved on it. 

Brienne held out a hand for him to toss it to her and she caught it easily with one hand.

“RB?”

“Red Bear, nickname I got when I was a kid. Just kinda’ stuck.”

“Ah,” she nodded her head and grinned. “I can’t imagine why on earth anyone would call you that.”

That was her attempt at a joke. He frowned in confusion for a moment, tilting his head to the side and realization slowly crept upon his handsome features.

“Clever,” he shook a finger at her.

She turned away from him, smirking and walked the path of her own cell phone flashlight until she reached the closet at the end of the hall. The apartment was still pretty new as she’d moved into it five months ago when she and Sansa decided it was time to part living quarters because of well… marriage. 

The closet was crowded with boxes of items she still unsure what to do with. There was still a brand new dish set from her father that was still unopened and it had to be about six years old, but she found just the box she was looking for.

_**ODDS AND ENDS NO. 2** _

It was written in her neat type-A handwriting but the inside of the box was an absolute clutter. Organized chaos was how she liked to live. There were notebooks upon notebooks, a textbook from university (Jesus, she had graduated from university ten years ago - was almost  _ done _ paying off her student loans), a running shoe that had no mate, some framed photos of her and her ex-boyfriend, and there it was! She had literally sacked a bunch of candles in a grocery bag and tossed them into this box.

She pulled the bag up with a successful “ _ A-ha _ !” and closed the closet door to come back down the hallway.

Tormund was now sitting on her couch with one leg crossed over the knee, his foot shaking a little and nodding his head to what she presumed was imaginary music.

“Not really sure how long the power is going to be out but I found candles.”

Tormund stood from the couch and smoothed his hand over his jeans.

“Alright,” he said with a grin, “let’s get to lightin’.”

Brienne set the candles (there were six) in places that neither of them would trample on or accidentally get inflamed by. There were two on the mantle of her fireplace, one on the coffee table, one on the dining table, on the kitchen counter, one on a shelf in the hallway, and one on the bathroom counter. 

Tormund and Brienne sat on the couch opposite from each other, still silent. Alone. Together. She could tell that Tormund was an enemy of the silence because his knee would bob up and down and he was fidgeting. God, he was doing so much fidgeting.

“If you want to go smoke on the balcony, you can go smoke. In fact, you don’t even need to stay here. I’ll be fine.”

“If there’s a blackout all over then won’t the traffic lights be out, too? Plus, we just looked at the news app on your phone and it’s advising everyone to stay still.”

Brienne sighed and nodded her head. He was right, he should just stay here. It was pitch black outside as well and there was safety in numbers. Safety in numbers, but did she really need him here? She didn’t actually  _ need _ a protector. She didn’t even want the company, all things considered. Instead of more protesting though, she stayed quiet and drummed her fingers on the arm of the couch.

As an afterthought, Tormund looked over to Brienne and added, “And no, I don’t need a smoke. You seem to keep trying to put me on the balcony, woman. I know you don’t like me but am I really that terrible?” 

“Don’t like you?” Brienne frowned, “I never said I didn’t like you! I just think that perhaps a cigarette would calm your nerves. You just seem really jumpy.”

“It’s just the dark and quiet.” He went quiet for a moment then continued, “And you didn’t have to say you didn’t like me, I can kind of tell. I feel it in your energy. I overheard you telling Sansa that I was boorish and loud… oh yes, and unruly.” 

“I don’t hate you,” Brienne mumbled. 

She didn’t  _ hate _ him, that was a ridiculous notion no matter how she may have acted around him. If anything, she was more ambivalent about him. Yes, he was loud, boorish, and unruly but that didn’t necessarily make him an awful person. If anything, it really added character and it just made him someone that took Brienne a bit of getting used to. And right now, she still wasn’t quite used to him. 

Even with the lustful looks and extra attention, she didn’t hate him and truthfully, she didn’t even hate  _ that _ . Most of her reactions of being scandalized was to keep up appearances. It was just ...so strange because no one had ever really looked at her that way and it felt  _ weird. _

Really. Why her?

Deep down though, it didn't feel so weird. Not really… but that wasn’t the point of this. Right now, they needed to survive this blackout.

“You’ve never hated me? Never?” He asked her timidly and she turned to look at him again.

“Never have you ever?”

Then a slow smile crept on his lips and despite all the irritation and frustration she felt in this blackout, Brienne chuckled a little. Those lavender scented candles were calming her anxiety pretty good.

“Do you remember that game?”

Brienne frowned, “What?”

“Never Have I Ever. Do you remember that game?”

“I’ve never played it.”

Tormund seemed deeply offended by this, putting his hand to his chest as his mouth fell open in offended shock. It only made Brienne laugh a little more. It was definitely the candles.

“Never have I ever played Never Have I Ever.”

“Oh, Brienne, you haven’t  _ lived _ until you’ve played it! Do you have any alcohol in the cupboard?”

"Do you really think I'm going to play that game with  _you_?" She tilted her head down and looked at him for a moment.

The silence was long and maddening but Tormund only stared back at her in return. He folded his arms across his chest and rolled his neck in a way that was so comical Brienne couldn't help the undignified snort she released.

"Fine!" She held up a finger and pursed her lips, glaring at him. "But this stays here and no one else finds out!"

Tormund gave a high pitched cackle and slapped his hands together proceeding to rub them slowly. She was already regretting the decision.


	2. Part Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Tormund gave a high pitched cackle and slapped his hands together proceeding to rub them slowly. She was already regretting the decision._
> 
>  
> 
> Brienne and Tormund finally play that game...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is meant to be silly and fun because sometimes we need silly and fun so I hope you enjoy the conclusion. Happy New Year to everyone that has celebrated and is celebrating. Make it a good year! As always, thanks for the reviews and kudos! <3

_Tormund gave a high pitched cackle and slapped his hands together proceeding to rub them slowly. She was already regretting the decision._

 

_\--------------------------------------------------------------------------  
_

 

Of course, she had alcohol. She lived alone and her best friend in the whole wide world had neglected her for love and marriage. Not that she wasn’t happy for her but she was still also sad about it, too. Eating feelings and drinking alcohol were her companions on Netflix binging weekend nights now.

“What’s your poison?”

“Tequila if you have it. We may as well make it interesting,” his eyebrows waggled and she perked one of her own back at him.

“I’m only joking,” he bowed his head smiling, “if anything it’ll just make me sleepy.”

She got the image of Tormund big and sprawled on her couch, probably loudly snoring. He seemed like the type. She fought hard not to laugh at that, too. Brienne pushed up from the couch and headed into the kitchen. Forty-five minutes in and the power was still out. She may as well make the night go by faster and what better way to do that than with bad decision making and alcohol?

As she searched in the kitchen cupboard for her tequila, Tormund explained the rules of the game to her.

“So you just basically take a drink anytime you've actually done something that someone mentions! It’s easy, right?”

Once she got the entire ordeal, she thought smugly that she would become the winner of this game. Tormund seemed like the type of person that drank consistently in a game of _Never Have I Ever_.

“Seems easy enough,” Brienne replied.

She spotted the bottle of Jose Cuervo all the way in the back, grabbed two shot glasses, and headed back into the living room.

Tormund was already on the floor by her coffee table, laying on his side with one leg crossed over the other and propped on his elbow. He looked wonderfully comfortable and long and …

Brienne set the shot glasses and bottle of Cuervo on the coffee table. Then she sat down with her long legs in front of her and folded one hand over the other in her lap.

“Since it was my idea, I’ll start it off.”

He unscrewed the top off and poured very small amounts of tequila into the shot glass. Brienne watched in patient silence. She was wary at what question he would choose first and inwardly died when he asked:

“Never have I ever gotten into a fist fight.”

She surprised him by grabbing the shot glass and tossing it back. Though the alcohol went down smoothly, it burned her throat and made her stomach feel hot. Just as soon as the sensation hit, it disappeared.

“Who did you fight?!” Tormund asked and grunted after downing his.

“College. Got into a fight with a guy that tried to force himself on me. But you see, it was on some dare which for some reason, guys really seemed to think that was funny. Oh _I dare you to try and get in Brienne’s pants_.” She shook her head. “Anyway, he messed with the wrong person that time. Never had to worry about that again.”

“What a complete and utter shit! You don’t need to do all that to get a girl’s attention.”

“Oh no, you can just look at them from across the room with some strange expression,” Brienne stared at him pointedly.

“In my defense, _I_ thought I looked sexy which in fact, I have since learned that I did not, after being pulled aside by Jon. And I apologize. It’s hard when you spot a woman that’s hot beyond belief and you don’t actually know what to say to her.”

“Hello always works just fine,” she argued, ignoring his "hot beyond belief" comment.

“Well, hello then.”

Now it was Tormund’s turn to look at her. She always saw him smiling and laughing, she didn’t realize just how goddamn good looking he was when his expression was serious. It rendered her momentarily speechless.

“Apology accepted,” she said quietly and looked down at the empty shot glasses.

“Alright, now that that’s out of the way. It’s your turn!”

Tormund was already pouring more tequila into the shot glasses.

"Wait, so you're not going to share your fight story?"

He looked over at her and smirked, "Where would you like me to begin?"

Fair enough.

“Okay,” she thought for a moment about it and smiled, “Never have I ever cried during a cartoon movie.”

When both of them reached for the shot glasses, they both laughed.

“Well, crying is my secret so you can’t tell anyone but I cry at everything,” she laughed and tossed the liquid back, not yet used to the burn in her throat.

“Okay and I’ll remember that.” He nodded. “For me, I cried like a baby watching _UP_ . I mean, who doesn’t cry watching that movie, right? Oh and _Wall-E_. You know what? I cry at all those movies.”

Tormund tossed his head back with laughter.

“Did you cry watching _Wreck-It Ralph_?” She was humoring him but was amused at the fervent nod of his head.

“Are you kidding me? A big fella’ that just wants to be respected and loved even though he pretty much destroys everything in his wake? I _am_ Wreck-It Ralph!”

“I don’t think you destroy everything,” she said sympathetically.

“Oh trust me, you haven’t seen me with a plate of food in front of me.”

“Oh god,” she shook her head and laughed again.

He was absolutely ridiculous and she found herself loving every bit of it.

“Alright,” he rubbed his hands together and took his chin in his hand.

The flickering light from the flames of the candles cast dancing shadows on his face. They accentuated his green eyes, which reminded her of someone’s favorite blanket or sweater, that had been washed over and over, like it had been used several times. Trust, kindness, and warmth.

“Let’s get a little bit more creative.”

Brienne perked an eyebrow at that and he nodded his head.

“Alright,” he held out his hands and gave her two thumbs up, “never have I ever gone skinny dipping.”

Brienne folded her arms and Tormund gave a hearty chortle before tossing his tequila back and pouring more alcohol into the shot glass.

“Okay, so I was about sixteen and I wanted to show off for this girl who, for all intents and purposes, I thought was worth it. I stripped down naked and jumped in a lake. The water was so cold, it shrunk me down like I was wee babe. I was too embarrassed to come back out of the water and ended up with no girlfriend and a shrunken penis.”

Brienne laughed loudly then covered her mouth to stifle the loudness.

“In my defense, it _was_ cold.” Her shoulders bobbed up and down as she still chuckled. He joined in with her.

“Never have I ever been thrown up on.”

They both looked at each other in silence then slowly reached over and grabbed their respective glasses and tossed them back.

In unison, they said one thing:

“Jon.”

Then they both began to laugh. Jon never could hold his liquor.

More questions passed and more drinks were tossed back. Before soon, Brienne was giggling at almost anything he said while he seemed more determined to make her laugh all the more. He didn’t realize that in her current state it took little to no effort. Either way, she let him work hard for her amusement

They were both pretty tipsy by now and Brienne had since pulled off her sweater to reveal a white tank top underneath while Tormund was now lying on his back with a knee propped in the air and his hands resting on his stomach.

“Alright,” he laughed, “I got one.”

How had they not run out of questions yet?

“Never have I ever gotten a tattoo on a whim.”

Brienne was too far into her tequila to even fight that one. She leaned over and grabbed her glass and tossed it back.

“Oh no,” Tormund was watching her drink and when she sat the glass back down and filled it with more drink, he was sitting up.

“What?” She asked and slowly blinked, looking away.

“I want to see it. What is it?”

Brienne sighed and hesitated, “If I show you this, you promise not to laugh?”

“I would never laugh. I swear on my dear, sweet angelic mother. And you can take that to the fucking bank.”

Dear god. She was so embarrassed. Thankfully, he couldn’t see her blushing in this dim light. Only three other people had known about this tattoo in her lifetime. Now Tormund would be the fourth.

“When I turned twenty-one, Sansa, Margaery, and I went out for a night on the town. Margaery is another best friend of ours but that’s obviously not the point of this. So we all got tattoos and I still can’t believe I let them influence me to do this but we were young and it was in the moment and well…”

With a sigh, she stood from her spot and turned her back to Tormund. Lifting her tank top and pushing her sweats down just a bit, she revealed the smallest, _tiniest_ Mickey Mouse tattoo just at the curve of her behind.

Tormund was deathly quiet and she sobered up at the idea that he thought she looked like an idiot but when she turned around and found him looking at her differently than he had been during the beginning of this game, she realized that he had no problems with the tattoo at all.

“Why are you being so quiet?” She sat back down and criss-crossed her legs in front of her.

“I just never thought you had it in you. When the lights come back on, you’re going to have to show that to me again. I just want to save it in my memories.”

She made a face at him and his response was the most innocent of shrugs. He laid back down on his back and rubbed the back of his eyes while Brienne adjusted her shirt and sweats again.

“Never thought I’d think Mickey Mouse to be fucking sexy but then again, never thought I’d be playing a drinking game with my crush in her living room floor during a blackout.”

His crush? So he was still interested in her despite her shortness with him in the beginning. She didn’t know what to say to that and he didn’t pressure her into saying anything else either. What could she say? She wanted to say something but it was hard to think with the tequila clouding her thoughts and her feelings running into overdrive.

“I’ve never gotten a tattoo on a whim.” He narrowed his eyes at Brienne’s false shock, “so I guess I have to ask another question.”

That tattoo was the wildest thing she had ever done and would ever do.

He cracked his knuckles and smiled at her, “Never have I ever sent a nude picture.”

Brienne leaned back and watched as he tossed his drink back. The tequila was starting to get low, despite the small amounts they were pouring into the glass. Tormund’s eyes darted to it and then back to her.

“You look forlorn that our game is ending. I think you’re enjoying this.”

It wasn’t really the game so much as it was her present company.

“Who is the poor woman you sent your nudes to? Also, did she ask for them because if she didn’t…”

“Ah, ah, ah,” Tormund poured tequila in his glass and lay back down on his back, “I never do _anything_ unless a woman wants me to.” He spoke in an unctuous tone and Brienne rolled her eyes, hiding the effect the baritone in his voice had on her.

“Never have I ever had sex in a public place.”

Tormund tossed another back. Now she was doing it to work in her favor, to feed her own curiosity about him. Yes, sexually.

“I think you’re trying to get me drunk so you can take advantage of me,” Tormund wagged his eyebrows at her.

“Like you, I’ve never done anything to or with a man without him wanting me to.”

Tormund tilted his head to the side and smirked.

“Like what?”

Brienne could actually hear the scratching record in her head at that question. She would play it cool and sit here in all her dignified, if drunken, glory.

“That is another drinking game for another day,” she absently tugged at her tank top,

The room was so damn hot now.

“So you’re telling me that we’ll be doing this again then?”

She blinked at him then said, “Never have I ever annoyed Brienne Tarth.”

He howled with laughter and took a drink then laughed so hard he had gone silent and his shoulders only bobbed up and down when she took one, too. Tossing her head back to down this drink made the room spin. Eventually, they _would_ have to stop but she was determined to show him that she could keep up with him even if she obviously couldn’t.

“Never have I ever, shit, I’m getting drunk now.” He cleared his throat loudly and pounded his chest, “Never have I ever kissed a girl in the rain.”

Tormund grabbed his glass and took a sip and Brienne watched him drink in silence. The point of the game was to be honest, yes? With reluctance, she reached over and grabbed her glass and tossed it back.

“Well I’m just going to be honest here. Nobody cares about my encounter with a woman in the rain but I _do_ want to hear about yours.”

“Oh God, men are so…”

“Oh no, see, this isn’t about me being a man. Well, it _is_ about me being a man but it’s mostly about me trying to imagine you kiss some woman in the rain. It’s just hard imagining you kissing in the rain.”

“Excuse you!”

“Sorry. Kissing. Wet. Brienne Tarth? I don’t know but don’t let me take this away from you. Please go on and describe her to detail, too.”

She shot him a look and he zipped his lips.

“Fine.”

She uncrossed her legs and leaned back to rest on the palms of her hands.

“She was my childhood friend. When I first moved here I had a hard time making new friends, Elaine was one of the few people to acknowledge me. I was gangly and awkward, I kept to myself. She saw something in me I could never see. I probably won’t ever see,” she admitted. “She was the complete opposite of me - beautiful, funny, outgoing, all the things I wanted to be. I admired her and deep down, I knew I had a crush on her, too.”

She could still remember Elaine very well, with her big, pretty smile and golden brown skin that always looked sun kissed no matter the weather. Brienne’s favorite thing about her were legs, long and thick.

“Not only were we great friends but she also played sports with me, too. I remember when she told me she was moving. I was so angry and upset. More upset than I actually thought I would be. It’s silly to think it but I felt betrayed. She was my closest friend. So I avoided her for weeks. Until… until she was leaving and I’ll never forget how it was raining _so_ much that day. I apologized for my rude behavior, told her I would miss her and then… we kissed.”

She shrugged and smiled to herself. That was one of her favorite memories.

“Was there… tongue involved?”

Brienne’s thoughts snapped from the memory and she glared at him.

“No, see, I think I lied. This is about me being a man. Please forgive me, I’m drunk now and wow, Brienne Tarth kissed a girl in the rain. And it was fuckin’ romantic, wasn’t it? Is that why you’re not wanting to date me?”

She frowned in confusion and then realization hit. Men really could be so stupid.

“You think I don’t want to date you because I’m attracted to women only? First of all, way to think so highly of yourself.” She ignored him trying to interrupt her to defend himself, “That’s not why, Tormund. I didn’t like what Sansa and Jon did. They were trying to set me up without my permission and it felt like a sabotage.”

“That’s fair enough,” he nodded. “So you don’t hate me and you’re not opposed to dating me.”

Brienne sat up just a bit and in very refined voice, replied, “I am not.”

She was surprised she had said it but she knew that she meant exactly what she said.

“Back to the game then,” and when Brienne opened her mouth to ask her question, he held his hand up and then began to chuckle. “I’m getting fucking drunk. I need to walk this off.”

He tried to get up but struggled and fell back down. Brienne covered her mouth, trying hard not to laugh but failed and a loud, braying laugh escaped her lips. Her eyes went wide and she found herself laughing even harder. They were now laughing together, ugly and loud but also wild and carefree. She laughed so hard tears sprang in the corners of her eyes and she was no longer covering her mouth. She couldn’t even speak and was struggling to contain her flailing hands as she laughed her head off.

Eventually, the pair’s laughter died down to silence and Brienne was wiping her eyes with the back of her hand.

A long sigh of relief came after the tightness in her stomach relaxed from all the laughing and Tormund let out a low whistle of satisfaction. He placed his hand on the table to steady himself and looked across the table at Brienne.

“You have such a beautiful fucking laugh.”

“You do, too,” she sighed again and propped her chin in her hand, gazing at him from across the table.

“Okay, so we’re drunk now and in the morning you just may change your mind but let’s try it again. It’s just me. You. The candles. And your shitty electricity.”

She smiled.

“Would you like to go on a date? It’ll just be us and since it’s our second date-”

“Second date?”

“Brienne,” he held out his arms, looking around the room, “we are sitting in the ambience of a date. Scented candles in a dark room over drinks while we find out things about each other? That is a date and not even you can deny it. And before you do try to deny, I know your ass is stubborn.” He went quiet then added, “And also stamped with a Mickey Mouse tattoo.”

“If you tell _anyone_ Tormund Gianstbane, I swear to god I will kill you.” Her smile was gone and no matter how much he grinned at her from across the coffee table, she made it very plain that she was serious.

“Wow, never have I ever killed anyone before.”

Brienne grabbed her shot glass and downed it, slamming back on the table.

“Well now I know you’re lying.”

“Do you?”

Tormund went quiet and then grabbed his glass and finished it.

“You can kill me if you’d like.”

She could see from those hooded eyes exactly what he meant by “kill”. Though her French was rusty (much to her father’s great disappointment) she still remembered all the dirty sayings she learned throughout the years from her advanced French speaking classmates and friends. _La petite mort_ was one of them. The little death, ah yes. A little death with a big, ginger haired man was just the ticket. Wasn’t it?

And now she couldn’t stop thinking about Tormund and _la petite mort_ together. Great.

“So fine, our second date. Where will our second date be?”

He leaned against her couch and closed his eyes. Her own eyes flickered to the snug fit of his jeans on his legs, which looked - even in this light, thick and strong.

“We can come to my house and play Truth or Dare.”

“Absolutely _not_ ,” she cut her eyes at him then looked away. She could see see him shifting around, in her peripheral vision and when she did finally turn to face him, she saw that he was scooting around the table to move closer to her.

Her nerves were telling her to move but there were other things, things like the deepest, lowest pit of her stomach and the quickening pace of her heart, that told her say right there. Let him get closer. Let’s just _see_ …

“I have one more question,” Tormund didn’t even bother pouring any liquid into the glass, he pushed it towards Brienne and gave her a once over.

She returned it with one of her own and turned to look at the bottle. Dear god, it was almost empty and they were drunk and flirting - she was almost terrified at how this was going to end.

“It is your turn, I think. Actually, I’m not sure.”

“Never have I ever,” he paused for dramatics, “kissed Tormund Giantsbane.”

“Are you serious?” She rolled her eyes and looked away, shaking her head. “How long had you been planning that question?”

“Since the lights went out,” he started to chuckle.

“You did all this for one kiss? Ridiculous.”

“Smooth though, right?”

“No, it’s not.”

Brienne struggled to get up from her spot on the floor, knees cracking as she stood. She swayed a little and held her hands out to steady herself. Tormund went to help her but she pulled from his reach. She could do it and she silently told him so by pursing her lips until they were in a tight pinch.

“I’ll be right back.”

She carefully made her way down the hall, using the wall as leverage and went inside the bathroom. Without fail, drinking made her pee for no less than one minute. After she finished and washed her hands, she splashed water on her face and fluffed her hair. She tried to fix up her face, perhaps not look too dead in the eyes or “too drunk” but it was impossible to do that when she was clearly drunk.

Brienne pressed her palms flat on the counter and looked down at the sink. The candlelight wasn’t much help when it came to fixing her hair or her face in the mirror but she worked with what she had.

Deciding that straightening it as best she could wasn’t good enough, she shook her head and tousled it.

When she headed back down the hallway and into the living room, Tormund was still sitting in the same spot. His eyes were now closed and his breathing was slow and even. Was he sleeping? His eyes slowly blinked open when she got close enough to him and sat back down.

Brienne knelt down next to him and grabbed the bottle of Jose Cuervo and downed the remainder of it one gulp. Tormund’s eyes nearly popped out of his head. Silently, she took his face in her hands and leaned forward to press her lips to his. Instantaneously, his arm wrapped around her waist.

He tasted like tequila and cigarettes. God, why was it so goddamn _sexy_?

When their kiss deepened, she released a soft moan. He trailed his tongue across her bottom lip in a silent request for her to part her lips. Once she complied, he slowly slipped his tongue between them. He moved her onto his lap with ease and smoothed his hand over the dip in her back as their kiss deepened.

Her hands snaked their way up into his hair, cradling the back of his head.

His long, ginger beard was prickly against her skin but not in a way that would agitate it. In fact, she found she quite liked the way it felt.

She discovered he was a patient kisser. He took his time guiding his tongue around hers, much like the way his hands moved over her lower back. As she settled onto his lap, he gripped her waist and pushed her down onto his lap. When she felt the hardness of his jeans, the instinct to push down and meet the growing erection overcame her. But just as the kissing seemed to intensify, a loud beep from her kitchen stove sounded off and all the lights in the living room came back on.

It all suddenly to a halt and Brienne pulled back to look down at him.

“That’s a sign,” he said softly with a chuckle, darting his tongue out and licking his lips.

Maybe he was right and she slowly and regretfully pulled away from him, standing and holding out a hand to help him up.

“Never have I ever experienced a blackout like that,” he said teasingly.

Brienne laughed and bowed her head.

“Thanks for staying,” she finally said and leaned forward to kiss him on the cheek, even if some beard got in her way.

“Of course, I was going to stay and damn I’m glad I did.” He put his hands in his pockets.

“So, I’ll call you and we can…”

“Oh yeah! Definitely,” Tormund nodded his head enthusiastically.

Brienne offered him her couch for the night but he argued against that, stating that he wouldn’t be able to trust himself with her sleeping in the bed so close. He was joking but Brienne knew she wouldn’t have refused him and she wanted to take it slowly. Or she at least wanted to _try_.

And on their second date, as they curled up on the couch in his apartment and watched one of those animated Disney movies she always cried watching, she decided that she never would she ever pass up a chance on Tormund Giantsbane again.


End file.
